iOS 27 beta 5 released yesterday, and alongside redesigned app icons and new Siri AI voice options, the update also lets you make Liquid Glass more transparent than ever. The latest change affects the Liquid Glass slider in the Settings app, giving users a new level of control over how transparent or tinted the interface appears.
Liquid Glass slider in iOS 27 now enables even more transparency with beta 5
When iOS 27 launches next month, it will bring refinements for Apple's Liquid Glass design across many aspects of the iPhone interface. The design language uses layered, translucent materials to create depth and context while preserving readability. From the Home Screen and Control Center to system alerts and app backgrounds, Liquid Glass is one of the most visually distinctive updates Apple has introduced in years.
But iOS 27 also adds an important customization tool: a Liquid Glass slider. This isn't just a static style option. It gives users the ability to choose how much glass-like transparency they want to see. As a result, people who prefer a more subtle frosted look can keep their interface more opaque, while those who want a bright airy feel can increase transparency dramatically.
With beta 5, Apple tweaked the slider so that its most transparent setting is now even more transparent than before. In earlier builds of the beta, the strongest transparency setting was fairly open, but the new 'Ultra Clear' setting removes more of the visible tint and blur, creating a much cleaner look. It is not a dramatic overhaul, but for users who enjoy seeing more content underneath their UI panels, the difference is meaningful.
How the Liquid Glass slider works
The new slider lives in Settings, then Appearance, then Liquid Glass. It offers a continuous range of adjustment rather than a simple toggle. On one end, you can make Liquid Glass highly transparent. On the other end, you can make it very tinted. The middle options allow for a balance that keeps text legible while still showing the colorful layers of the interface behind it.
The inclusion of a slider is important because transparency in interface design is a tradeoff. More transparency can make an interface feel modern and open, but too much can harm readability. Different people have different tolerances for this, and a slider lets each user find the perfect balance.
Before this slider existed, users were mostly limited to system-defined materials. Dynamic effects such as 'reduce transparency' existed in accessibility settings, but that was a blunt tool: it either kept the blur effects on or switched them off. With iOS 27, the Liquid Glass slider offers much finer control. It allows for partial transparency levels that were never easy to access before, making the iPhone experience more flexible and personal.
Why the new Ultra Clear option matters
The most transparent setting, now described as Ultra Clear, is the star of beta 5. Apple has changed how the glass material is composited over the background. With heavier blur and tint, interface elements can appear more substantial and easier to distinguish. With less blur and tint, panels become more open and allow background content to remain visible in high detail.
The new Ultra Clear setting is noticeably cleaner than the previous maximum transparency. App icons appear less like they are sitting behind frosted panels and more like they are glowing through a barely-there layer of glass. For users who prefer minimal visual barriers, this can make a big difference in how the overall system feels.
The change is likely the result of Apple tuning the material properties during the beta cycle. Betas often include visual refinements as the company adjusts to user feedback and testing. This adjustment suggests Apple wants to make sure the customization option is meaningful at its extremes. If the slider's maximum setting wasn't transparent enough, the feature would not feel nearly as flexible.
Design and accessibility considerations
Transparency is not just an aesthetic choice; it also has implications for accessibility. People with visual impairments or sensitivity to motion may prefer a less transparent interface. The new slider gives them a simple way to reduce distractions without needing to turn off all visual effects. Similarly, people who rely on high contrast can dial the slider toward the tinted side, which helps interface elements stand out from busy wallpaper images.
At the same time, the increased transparency option is good for users who want to see more of their wallpaper or feel a greater sense of space. Since the iPhone screen is a key part of the user experience, custom material effects can make the device feel more personal.
Developers will also need to keep Liquid Glass in mind when designing their own interfaces. Apple has provided guidelines for how custom views should interact with the system material, and the new slider means the appearance can vary by user preference. Apps that use their own opaque backgrounds may look different from apps that rely on system materials. As beta 5 shows, Apple is still fine-tuning the exact rendering behavior, so developers should test their apps against the latest beta.
What else is new in iOS 27 beta 5
In addition to the Liquid Glass slider change, beta 5 brings redesigned app icons. The new icons are designed to feel more at home in the Liquid Glass world, with simpler shapes and more consistent colors. Apple has also expanded Siri's AI voice options, adding more natural voices and improved speech synthesis. These changes reinforce the overall direction of iOS 27: a system that feels more fluid, more personal, and more intelligent.
Beta updates are often small steps forward, and beta 5 is no exception. But each tweak helps Apple polish the final release. This is especially true for a design-focused update like iOS 27, where subtle changes to color, blur, and transparency can have an outsized impact on the overall user experience.
When will iOS 27 be released?
iOS 27 is expected to arrive next month. The update will be available for a wide range of iPhones, and it will bring the Liquid Glass design language to more parts of the system than ever before. The beta process has already given us a good sense of what to expect, and the changes in beta 5 indicate that Apple is putting the finishing touches on the experience.
Users who are part of the beta program can try the new Liquid Glass settings immediately. The update is available through the normal Software Update mechanism for enrolled devices. As with all beta software, there may be bugs or performance issues, but the core feature set is now fairly stable.
For everyone else, the wait is not long. When iOS 27 ships, the Liquid Glass slider will be available out of the box. That means users won't have to dig into developer settings or use workarounds to customize the glass effect. The feature is standard, and it gives every iPhone owner the ability to tailor one of the most prominent visual elements of the operating system.
How users are responding
Reactions to the increased transparency option have been largely positive. People who enjoy a clean, minimal look appreciate that they can now get a more open interface. Others prefer the more subtle tinted styles, but they still value having the choice. The response highlights the importance of user control in modern operating systems.
Some users have noted that the difference between the previous maximum and the new Ultra Clear is subtle in screenshots but more noticeable in person. The lack of blur makes text and icons appear to float closer to the surface of the display. It also allows colors from the wallpaper to remain more vivid underneath app panels, which can make the screen feel brighter and more dynamic.
There are also users who want even more control. The current slider adjusts the balance of transparency and tint, but it does not allow separate adjustment of blur radius or color saturation. It is possible Apple could add more advanced options in a future update, but for now, the single slider is enough for most people.
Comparison with previous iOS versions
Liquid Glass is not the first translucent design Apple has used. Older versions of iOS relied on frosted glass effects in the Control Center, Notification Center, and app folders. However, those effects were largely fixed by the system. Users could turn them off or minimize motion, but there was no way to fine-tune the level of transparency.
iOS 27 changes this by placing a slider directly in the user-facing settings. That is a notable departure from the past. Rather than treating translucency as a fixed property of the interface, Apple now treats it as a preference. It remains to be seen whether this approach will extend to other parts of the system in future updates.
The inclusion of Ultra Clear also gives Apple a way to show off the capabilities of newer hardware. The visual effect requires real-time compositing of multiple layers, and the fact that it can be adjusted smoothly suggests the system is well optimized.
Potential drawbacks
More transparency has some downsides. Busy wallpaper images can make text harder to read, and some people may find that too much transparency makes the interface feel cluttered. The slider helps mitigate this, because users who do not like the look can simply move it to a more tinted setting.
Battery life and performance are also worth mentioning. Rendering more transparent materials can require additional graphics work. However, Apple's hardware is generally well equipped to handle these effects, and the company would not ship the feature if it had a major impact on day-to-day performance.
Ultimately, the new slider represents a thoughtful balance between customization and coherence. Even with the most transparent setting, Liquid Glass retains enough shape and structure for the interface to remain usable.
With beta 5 now in the hands of testers, the final release is approaching. The changes made in this update show that Apple is actively listening to feedback and refining the design before the public launch. Users who value a clean, transparent interface have even more reason to be excited about iOS 27.
Source: 9to5Mac News